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Even from a time when he was smallest in stature, the biggest stage always beckoned for James Maloney.
As a five-year-old preparing for his first Christmas concert, Maloney refused to perform unless preschool teachers agreed to a simple edict.
"He didn't want to sing the carols with the other kids," Maloney's mother, Debbie, recalls.
"So that's what they did. All the kids got up and sang, and then James performed his own carol solo.
"Right from the start, he always wanted centre stage."
The bigger, the better.
A few years later, when his cheeky streak and footballing ability were booming at equal rates, Maloney would make a point of targeting the largest player in opposition teams.
Pat Kirk, his junior coach at Central Coast outfit St Edward's, remembered the wiry playmaker hurling his impish frame - and bold insults - at the most unlikely rivals.
"Then he'd disappear and let his teammates deal with the consequences," Kirk laughs.
We present the squads of every team for round six of the 2013 NRL Telstra premiership.
"He was always scheming to do something, or trying to convince the referees to let him cheat.
"He reminded me a bit of Tommy Bishop with all that cheek."
Should Maloney parlay this Sunday's representative debut for Country into a start for NSW, Kirk believes the 26-year-old will handle the pressure like few others.
"He'll probably walk out there and wave at the crowd," Kirk predicts.
"He always loved the stage and the bigger the better. He was born to be out there."
Make no mistake, Maloney is out there. When he's not cracking suggestive gags about "barbecuing alone" on The Footy Show, the Roosters recruit is sure to be tormenting fiancee Jess Anderson with practical jokes in their new Maroubra abode.
"I'm absolutely petrified of the dark and James plays on that," she says.
"He'll switch all the lights off and jump out and scare me.
"I also hate creepy crawlies, so he throws spiders and insects at me. He can be such a punish."
But in a very different way, Maloney has been on the receiving end himself.
It's not only a bold character that makes him a refreshing rarity in the modern age. It's more the fact Maloney has earned his stripes the old-school way.
Before storming to prominence with the New Zealand Warriors in 2010, he toiled in NSW Cup obscurity for three years at Parramatta and Melbourne.
The final season of his lower-grade apprenticeship, 2009, was both difficult and defining.
Maloney's father and first coach, Brian, passed away after a long battle with cancer on January 31 that year.
Understand Brian and you'll appreciate what representing Country will mean to his middle son.
A quintessential bush footy player, the dry-witted chippy captain-coached sides in Orange, where his three boys first played the game.
Craig Bellamy was among his rivals in the state's central west, and fittingly enough it was the super coach who presented Maloney with his first NRL jersey just three months after Brian's death.
"His dad was his biggest role model. He coached him from the start," Debbie says. "He supported James, because of his size. I remember James would stand in a huddle with his teammates and only come up to their armpits.
"That's the reason why he's such an old-school player who tackles around the legs.
"He still speaks about his dad and I know he would've loved to see him debut."
Jess adds: "James has got photos up around the house and we show them to our son Kade, because we want Brian to be part of his life.
"The big matches like his debut and the (2011) grand final, that's when James thinks about his dad.
"He takes it pretty hard and wishes his dad were still alive to see what he's achieved.
"This will be one of those games, especially because his dad was such a proud country bloke."
But Maloney also knows this opportunity is 12 months overdue.
Last January he was called into the Emerging Blues camp as a leading contender for the No.6 jersey, only to fall away because of a surprise form slump under Warriors coach Brian McClennan.
Little secret was made of the fact that Maloney wanted to return home, with Jess struggling to care for two infants abroad.
"Last year was really tough, having our second child and with James gone every second weekend," she recalls.
"If it was just the two of us we would've been fine, because we loved New Zealand. But after everything that happened with James's dad, we wanted the kids to grow up close to family."
Maloney refuses to blame his personal situation for missing out last year, but is driven by the painful memory of making his farewell for the Warriors off the bench.
"The finish to last year at the Warriors was very disappointing, but you take a lot of lessons out of that," he says. "A bit closer to home is always handy as well. It's always been the case when you're happy and enjoying things you play better football.
"Everything just snowballed. It was tough. Going through that hard time, I got a fair bit out of it.
"You don't want to be involved with sides that dip out like that. It was the first time I ever finished a season knowing I wasn't going to be playing finals football, because it's hard and you lose motivation.
"Knowing how bad that feeling is can drive you."
When he oversaw Maloney's carpentry apprenticeship, Kirk privately wondered whether the boy possessed the necessary drive. His young charge enjoyed a good time and could be lazy on the work site.
But Kirk has noticed an enormous change since Brian's death, which has matured Maloney into a man who embraces the job at hand without any cost to his inner larrikin.
"I think it made him grow up a lot quicker and learn responsibility," Kirk says. "Even though he's got an older brother, James seemed to take it upon himself.
"Even at the funeral, he was the go-to guy. I think you have to say the rest has been a determination to do it for his dad."
Read more: http://www.foxsports.com.au/league/n...#ixzz2QrFk9igI
Even from a time when he was smallest in stature, the biggest stage always beckoned for James Maloney.
As a five-year-old preparing for his first Christmas concert, Maloney refused to perform unless preschool teachers agreed to a simple edict.
"He didn't want to sing the carols with the other kids," Maloney's mother, Debbie, recalls.
"So that's what they did. All the kids got up and sang, and then James performed his own carol solo.
"Right from the start, he always wanted centre stage."
The bigger, the better.
A few years later, when his cheeky streak and footballing ability were booming at equal rates, Maloney would make a point of targeting the largest player in opposition teams.
Pat Kirk, his junior coach at Central Coast outfit St Edward's, remembered the wiry playmaker hurling his impish frame - and bold insults - at the most unlikely rivals.
"Then he'd disappear and let his teammates deal with the consequences," Kirk laughs.
We present the squads of every team for round six of the 2013 NRL Telstra premiership.
"He was always scheming to do something, or trying to convince the referees to let him cheat.
"He reminded me a bit of Tommy Bishop with all that cheek."
Should Maloney parlay this Sunday's representative debut for Country into a start for NSW, Kirk believes the 26-year-old will handle the pressure like few others.
"He'll probably walk out there and wave at the crowd," Kirk predicts.
"He always loved the stage and the bigger the better. He was born to be out there."
Make no mistake, Maloney is out there. When he's not cracking suggestive gags about "barbecuing alone" on The Footy Show, the Roosters recruit is sure to be tormenting fiancee Jess Anderson with practical jokes in their new Maroubra abode.
"I'm absolutely petrified of the dark and James plays on that," she says.
"He'll switch all the lights off and jump out and scare me.
"I also hate creepy crawlies, so he throws spiders and insects at me. He can be such a punish."
But in a very different way, Maloney has been on the receiving end himself.
It's not only a bold character that makes him a refreshing rarity in the modern age. It's more the fact Maloney has earned his stripes the old-school way.
Before storming to prominence with the New Zealand Warriors in 2010, he toiled in NSW Cup obscurity for three years at Parramatta and Melbourne.
The final season of his lower-grade apprenticeship, 2009, was both difficult and defining.
Maloney's father and first coach, Brian, passed away after a long battle with cancer on January 31 that year.
Understand Brian and you'll appreciate what representing Country will mean to his middle son.
A quintessential bush footy player, the dry-witted chippy captain-coached sides in Orange, where his three boys first played the game.
Craig Bellamy was among his rivals in the state's central west, and fittingly enough it was the super coach who presented Maloney with his first NRL jersey just three months after Brian's death.
"His dad was his biggest role model. He coached him from the start," Debbie says. "He supported James, because of his size. I remember James would stand in a huddle with his teammates and only come up to their armpits.
"That's the reason why he's such an old-school player who tackles around the legs.
"He still speaks about his dad and I know he would've loved to see him debut."
Jess adds: "James has got photos up around the house and we show them to our son Kade, because we want Brian to be part of his life.
"The big matches like his debut and the (2011) grand final, that's when James thinks about his dad.
"He takes it pretty hard and wishes his dad were still alive to see what he's achieved.
"This will be one of those games, especially because his dad was such a proud country bloke."
But Maloney also knows this opportunity is 12 months overdue.
Last January he was called into the Emerging Blues camp as a leading contender for the No.6 jersey, only to fall away because of a surprise form slump under Warriors coach Brian McClennan.
Little secret was made of the fact that Maloney wanted to return home, with Jess struggling to care for two infants abroad.
"Last year was really tough, having our second child and with James gone every second weekend," she recalls.
"If it was just the two of us we would've been fine, because we loved New Zealand. But after everything that happened with James's dad, we wanted the kids to grow up close to family."
Maloney refuses to blame his personal situation for missing out last year, but is driven by the painful memory of making his farewell for the Warriors off the bench.
"The finish to last year at the Warriors was very disappointing, but you take a lot of lessons out of that," he says. "A bit closer to home is always handy as well. It's always been the case when you're happy and enjoying things you play better football.
"Everything just snowballed. It was tough. Going through that hard time, I got a fair bit out of it.
"You don't want to be involved with sides that dip out like that. It was the first time I ever finished a season knowing I wasn't going to be playing finals football, because it's hard and you lose motivation.
"Knowing how bad that feeling is can drive you."
When he oversaw Maloney's carpentry apprenticeship, Kirk privately wondered whether the boy possessed the necessary drive. His young charge enjoyed a good time and could be lazy on the work site.
But Kirk has noticed an enormous change since Brian's death, which has matured Maloney into a man who embraces the job at hand without any cost to his inner larrikin.
"I think it made him grow up a lot quicker and learn responsibility," Kirk says. "Even though he's got an older brother, James seemed to take it upon himself.
"Even at the funeral, he was the go-to guy. I think you have to say the rest has been a determination to do it for his dad."
Read more: http://www.foxsports.com.au/league/n...#ixzz2QrFk9igI
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